Bishop Seitz / Diocese of El Paso (Left), Aaron Wells / Shutterstock.com (Right)
CV NEWS FEED // Bishop Mark Seitz of the Diocese of El Paso this week thanked U.S. Catholics for their contributions to refugee resettlement.
“My brother bishops and I could not be more grateful for the witness of faithful Catholics across our country who have, for many decades now, committed themselves to accompanying refugees as a visible sign of Christ’s love in the world,” said Bishop Seitz, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) website.
Bishop Seitz, who also serves as chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, made his remarks after President Joe Biden signed the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2025, allowing the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) to settle 125,00 refugees this upcoming fiscal year.
The USCCB’s Department of Migration and Refugee Services (MRS), along with nine other resettlement agencies, partners with the federal government on USRAP.
“Having just joined our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and the Universal Church in marking the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, what better time to give thanks to God for the reciprocal blessings exchanged through these efforts?” Bishop Seitz wrote.
As CatholicVote previously reported, the USCCB asked Catholics to pray for migrants as the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, observed on September 29, approached.
Bishop Seitz continued in his recent message, “From life-saving protection for refugee families, to the economic renewal they offer receiving communities, this is part of what it means to ‘love thy neighbor. Moreover, as we enter Respect Life Month, we recognize this as one of the many ways in which the consistency of the Church’s concern for the sanctity of human life manifests itself.”
The USCCB article also noted that the US government resettled 100,000 refugees in 2024, a number which the country has not reached since 1994.
This resettling “is a significant achievement, given the all-time low number seen in 2021 and some of the challenges facing American communities at this time, including a nationwide shortage of affordable housing,” Bishop Seitz said:
We appreciate the efforts undertaken by the Biden Administration in recent years to reassert and grow our nation’s proud tradition of welcoming refugees. This would not be possible without the bipartisan support of Congress, which has played a vital role in the success of the resettlement program since its inception.
He concluded, “Guided by the Gospel and faithful to our national values, the U.S. Catholic community will continue doing its part to carry this endeavor forward.”
